The thermoregulatory role of relative bill and leg surface areas in a Mediterranean population of Great tit (Parus major)

There is growing evidence on the role of legs and bill as 'thermal windows' in birds coping with heat stress. However, there is a lack of empirical work examining the relationship between the relative bill and/or leg surface areas and key thermoregulatory traits such as the limits of the thermoneutral zone (TNZ) or the cooling efficiency at high temperatures. Here, we explored this relationship in a Mediterranean population of Great tit (Parus major) facing increasing thermal stress in its environment. The lower and upper critical limits of the TNZ were found to be 17.7 +/- 1.6oC and 34.5 +/- 0.7 degrees C, respectively, and the basal metabolic rate was 0.96 +/- 0.12 ml O-2 min(-1) on average. The evaporative water loss (EWL) inflection point was established at 31.85 +/- 0.27 degrees C and was not significantly different from the value of the upper critical limit. No significant relationship was observed between the relative bill or tarsi size and TNZ critical limits, breadth, mass-independent VO2, or mass-independent EWL at any environmental temperature (from 10 to 40 degrees C). However, Great tit males (but not females) with larger tarsi areas (a proxy of leg surface area) showed higher cooling efficiencies at 40 degrees C. We found no support for the hypothesis that the bill surface area plays a significant role as a thermal window in Great tits, but the leg surface areas may play a role in males' physiological responses to high temperatures. On the one hand, we argue that the studied population occupies habitats with available microclimates and fresh water for drinking during summer, so active heat dissipation by EWL might be favored instead of dry heat loss through the bill surface. Conversely, male dominance behaviors could imply a greater dependence on cutaneous EWL through the upper leg surfaces as a consequence of higher exposure to harsh environmental conditions than faced by females.

Automated summary

The study found no significant relationship between the relative bill or tarsi size and thermoregulatory traits in Great tits, but males with larger tarsi areas showed higher cooling efficiencies at high temperatures. This suggests that leg surface areas may play a role in males' physiological responses to heat stress, while bill surface area does not seem to have a significant impact.